Easy Living
by Katalius123
Summary: Series of one-shot/vignettes set after the end of the novel. Floats between novel/film canons a bit. Carol and Therese begin their life together in Carol's Madison Avenue apartment and discover the underground LGBT scene of 1950s New York.
1. After the Elysee

**Easy Living**

* * *

Disclaimer: Characters (and my wasted gay soul) belong to Patricia Highsmith.

* * *

 _Therese walked toward her._

* * *

In a moment, she was beside Carol. She stood, and politely embraced Therese with a pair of kisses, one on either cheek. She was still smiling, but remembered herself and the presence of the gentleman across from her, and composed.

"Dull party after all?" Carol asked as a waiter brought over a place for Therese. She ordered a scotch for herself.

"Dispersing. Though I did manage to get a job out of it. I've an appointment at Harkevey's office at 11:30 tomorrow."

"What a thrill!" Carol and Therese, Carol in particular, were struggling to channel their inner excitement into the context of the moment. The man sat silently, debating how much longer he would stand being ignored.

"And who might this enchanting creature in the black dress be, Carol?" he asked.

"Oh how terribly rude of me. Roger, this is my friend, Ms. Therese Belivet." Carol allowed just enough isolation to the word "friend" that it made Therese look at the man to see if he noticed. He did not. Or if he did, he did not register it in his face. She extended a hand to him, he took it and gave it a small kiss, accompanied by a wink.

"You're terrible. Therese, this is Roger Davies. An antiquities buyer and the most impossible flirt I've ever known."

They laughed. Therese was unsure if she was permitted to. Roger sensed this and placed a friendly hand on her arm.

"Don't worry. You're not in any danger, my dear." He winked again. Carol looked from Roger to Therese knowingly, but Therese was still not caught up. At that moment, the waiter returned with fresh cocktails, and as he walked away and Therese noticed Roger's lingering glance, the very same sort of glance she had given Carol many times and that Genevieve Cranell had only an hour ago given her, she understood.

"So what fills your days, Therese?" Roger asked. As she went to answer, she felt Carol's heel brush her leg beneath the table. She did not risk a glance to catch Carol's eye, and assumed it had been accidental simply for the sake of seeing the evening through. If Carol's plan was to torture her until she could no longer stand the presence of company, she would easily succeed. Instead, Therese leaned in toward Roger.

"I'm a stage designer." She answered, taking a healthy sip of her scotch.

"Of course you are. What of your work would I have seen?"

At this she felt a pang of embarrassment. She still had not done anything of considerable note outside the smaller circles of New York theatre. But even as she gave herself this assessment, she could feel the piece of her that would have sat silently before saying "Oh, nothing" fall away. She was no longer to be in the habit of selling herself short, of denying any part of who she was. She had made that decision once and for all the moment she had entered the Elysee to find Carol.

"It all depends. I've just started some television work, and I did the sets for a play called _Small Rain_ this past winter, you might have seen something in the papers."

"Oh yes, I'm sure I did." Whether or not he was lying for the sake of being agreeable, neither of them cared.

"And I've just secured a position working on sets for the new play starring Genevieve Cranell. Under Ivor Harkevey. In fact I've just come from a party celebrating her arrival."

She felt impressive, a young woman about the town with famous company. She wished she had a cigarette at that moment to complete the picture. Her, sitting cross-legged at a dimly-lit corner table sipping scotch in an elegant, tight black dress, the woman she loved beside her. She glanced at Carol, who seemed enchanted. She knew how much Carol loved when she showed off, and now that she was this new, confident self, she enjoyed Carol's look of wonderment. It was subtle, one of her looks that only she could truly detect, and beneath it lay a clear and impatient hunger. She wanted to kiss her right then. Instead, she adjusted her slim legs beneath the table and allowed her own heal to caress Carol's ankle. And the look she gave her to accompany the gesture dispelled any question of its deliberateness.

"If you'll excuse me for a moment." Carol stood from the table and made some excuse for the powder room. When Therese moved her eyes to Roger, he was sporting a smile that gave the impression he was very pleased to finally have her alone.

"So, Ms. Belivet with the cool black dress and terribly interesting career, why do I get the feeling that those two facts are perhaps the least interesting things about you?"

"I'm afraid I don't know what you mean."

"Oh, darling. I've only known our friend Carol for a few weeks now, but…one recognizes one's kin."

Therese felt a sudden and incredible blush overcome her. She had never been spoken to about Carol this way, certainly not by a man, though she had never met a man of Roger's persuasion before, not that she was aware of, at least.

"Don't mistake me, my dear. This is no interrogation."

"Are you certain of that?"

He laughed. "All I mean is - the whole point of life on this sad little earth is for someone to look at you the way she did when you walked into this room. Relax, my dear. You are among friends." Therese smiled. She decided then that she adored this man and hoped they would stay great friends. He raised a glass.

"What are we toasting?" she asked.

"To you." Roger clinked their glasses and took the last sip of his martini. Carol returned. Therese, swept up in the conversation of the last moment, gently squeezed her hand above the table. It startled Carol, who betrayed a quick smile to Therese and then a glance to Roger, who winked his approval. It was a small beat of contact, but it was enough to make both Therese and Carol determined to end the evening sooner rather than later.

"So tell me all about this famous actress you've just come from celebrating. I've read wonderful things about her. She seems terribly glamorous." Roger said.

Therese thought for a moment. She wondered if even discussing Genevieve Cranell would inspire something in Carol - jealousy, or something less or more. She would say nothing of the feelings or glances they exchanged unless it was for some strange reason demanded of her, but she was curious if Carol, who knew her best of all, might see through the polite conversation.

"Yes, terribly glamorous." She decided she would not offer any description of her own, only affirm or reiterate adjectives assigned by Roger.

"English, yes?" Carol asked.

"Yes."

"Did you get to speak with her at all?" said Roger.

"Oh - yes. But only very briefly."

Carol was watching her, she could feel it. Perhaps she was imagining it, but she could sense her eyes on her lips, in a manner that was waiting for some morsel of information that would sway her opinion of Genieve Cranell one way or the other.

The evening carried on for another hour or so. Roger and Carol took supper, but Therese found herself uninterested and incapable of eating. By the time the check came, which Roger took care of despite their protests, Therese found herself somewhere approaching drunk. Not so much that she felt embarrassed in front of Carol, but enough that the slightest glimpse of exposed skin beneath's Carol's red scarf made her almost irate at the realization they were not in fact, in private company.

The trio parted at the sidewalk. Roger kissed them each goodbye. Carol offered to give him a ride somewhere but he declined and intimated he was waiting for a friend. Therese glanced back through the door and noticed their waiter saying his goodnights to the hostesses. Carol smiled at Roger and leaned in to give him a farewell embrace.

"You're a dog," she said, loud enough for Therese to hear. They laughed.

"You must come round to see us once the place is put together," Carol offered, and suddenly Therese, who had been so caught up in the pleasantness of the dinner, had forgotten the most blissful fact of all: she and Carol were at last together. More than that, they would be living together. She caught herself with a dumb smile.

"Oh of course my darlings. And Carol, if you need a professional's eye for the nick-nacks, I've got some lovely French baroque pieces for you to take a look at."

"I'll ring you tomorrow. You'll be in at the store?"

"With bells on."

The waiter emerged from the restaurant and stepped toward Roger. He looked to Carol and Therese, realizing they were mid-conversation.

"Sorry to interrupt. Shall we?" he said to Roger. "Will you ladies be joining us?"

Before Carol or Therese could make excuses, Roger spoke up. "Oh no. They've got very important business of their own," offering the waiter one of his signature winks. The waiter, understanding, looked back at the women and smiled in a way that took Therese's breath away for a moment. It was filled with the acknowledgment of their communal secret. She felt herself step outside of her body to look at the foursome standing silently on the sidewalk, connected by an evening's conversation and a lifetime's understanding of the truth they shared. She had never felt so proud to stand at Carol's side.

"Bon nuit, my dears." Roger and the waiter disappeared up Park Avenue.

And at last, Carol and Therese were alone on the sidewalk. Therese watched after Roger and the waiter for a lingering moment, until they made their way around a corner two blocks ahead. She turned and was struck by the sight of Carol, who was staring at her. Her expression was one she had never seen on Carol before, and the closest term she had for it was disbelief, or perhaps more simple still, love. Therese smiled back, and her smile was a promise; a promise that yes, she was real, yes, she was here, and yes, she was going to stay.

"So you changed your mind?" Carol broached.

"Not changed; remembered." And that was all Therese wanted to say about it. At least for now. The air was chill and crisp on their faces. Her bare legs felt the wind bite them as the hour turned to 11:00.

"Would you like to see the apartment? Or shall I take you home." The second part of Carol's question was an obvious formality. Her apartment uptown now felt no more than a place she used to sleep.

"All I know is I'm tired of strangers tonight." Therese said with that new confident voice that had been knocking Carol out since their tea that afternoon.

"All right, then." Carol led her to the car. They silently drove the few blocks to the building. Therese heard the sound of the beer can underneath her but only smiled to herself.

They found a parking spot just across the street from Carol's building. It was an impressive place, classic, and seemed to exist out of time among the more modern constructions around it. Just like Carol, Therese thought. She followed the older woman across the street. They did not speak, each of them lost in their own private thoughts of one another, of the miracle that had taken place tonight in the form of Therese's decision, marking the success of the most difficult gamble Carol had ever made in her life.

The night doorman nodded a greeting to Carol and Therese. Carol led her to the elevator, the apartment was on the second-to-top floor - Carol had pointed out the terrace from the street. They slowly walked down the hallway until they approached the door.

"You'll have to forgive the emptiness of it. I'm still bargaining my time as a buyer for the store and myself. Besides, there's plenty of furniture still to arrive from the house. And of course anything of yours you'd like to bring…"

Carol stopped, realizing Therese was not immediately at her side. Therese stood in the hallway a few paces back, halted as the realities of it all at last began catching up with her. Carol looked to her, her eyes curious and slightly afraid.

"Carol," Therese began, her voice steady, her mood quiet, "I don't want to talk about furniture."

Carol smiled. It was that soft smile that Therese loved, that she felt was hers alone. Carol opened the front door of her apartment and stepped inside. Therese followed, and Carol shut the door behind them. Slowly, before turning on any lights, Carol took the few steps toward Therese and kissed her. It was matter-of-fact and gentle, like placing the seal on a love note.

Carol pulled away. "Better?"

She still had on her smile. Therese returned it. "Yes."

It was a magnificent place. High ceilings, windows leading out to an expansive terrace that overlooked Madison Avenue. The kitchen and living room were open and inviting. A door down a hall to the right presumably led to the bedroom, with a washroom adjacent in the hall. Carol was right, there was hardly any furniture in the place. The kitchen was coming together, and she could see the makings of a bar on one side of the living room. Carol walked toward it and poured them each a brandy after shedding her fur coat and hanging it on the hook near the door. Therese shed hers, revealing again her dress. She walked toward the kitchen and leaned against the counter where three stools sat idly, waiting to be occupied in an apartment heretofore only occupied by one individual. She observed Carol, the way she swept her hair to one side without any thought, the way she bent over the liquor bottles to pour out their drinks, and Therese had to wonder how conscious the woman was of how her movement registered to her watchful, yearning eyes. But she knew Carol enough to know she never did anything by accident.

Carol approached her with the glass. Therese assumed she was deliberately avoiding leading her to the bedroom, and was more than happy to play the game with her.

"Red pajamas or blue?" Carol asked. Therese only laughed and took a sip of her brandy. She stepped away from Carol and slowly, every step a measured, chosen twitch of muscle, walked down the hall in the direction she knew the bedroom to be. She felt Carol's eyes on her. And could almost hear her tempered breath, so still and silent they were. The door was open. Therese stood halfway into the room and leaned against the threshold, sipping her brandy and looking at Carol in a way that would have been unrecognizable on the girl she was only a month ago.

"What do you think of this dress?"

Carol let out a single, clear laugh, like a bell. Therese smiled wide. Carol's eyes traveled up and down her body, assessing the younger woman and the changed, mysterious creature she had become. She took the last sip of her brandy with a powerful swig.

"I told you. You look very fine." She began walking toward Therese. "It must have been quite an extravagance."

"Quite an extravagance," Therese confirmed with a coy smile.

"You're never to buy a dress like that for yourself again, do you understand?" Carol tried to feign sternness, but her eager grin betrayed her.

"Why shouldn't I? I'm perfectly capable," Therese answered. By now, Carol was at the door of the bedroom. She stood opposite Therese, and extended her arms slowly, placing her hands on either of Therese's hips.

"Because that's my province," Carol said. She pulled Therese toward her. Therese quickly motioned to kiss her, but Carol pulled away, a teasing smile cloying at her lips. Then, slowly, in a way that made Therese want to burst, she moved her lips to Therese's left ear and whispered words that felt like phantoms in her memory: "What would you like?"

Therese felt her legs nearly buckle beneath her, but Carol's grip held her waist tight. Their faces moved so they were once again eye to eye, only inches between them. Therese fell for a moment into the depth of Carol's grey stare. Now, it was her turn to lean into Carol's ear.

"Anything," she whispered. And she gave Carol a soft kiss just beneath her earlobe at the top of her neck. She felt the shiver it sent through her. Slowly, Therese's lips traced their way down Carol's neck to her shoulder, slightly exposed by the cut of her blouse. Carol caught her face in her hands and pulled their gaze back to one another. Therese could see the change in her eyes, one that recognized the change in her.

Therese was no longer the cautious, delicate lover she had been out West. Her desire was real and present, and she needed Carol to understand that the years and experience between them were less important than they ever were. They were equals now, standing on the other side of the great summit of obstacles that had lain before them, triumphant and together. There was no need for the hesitation that had come from the fear of prying eyes. This was their home. Their bedroom. Their future before them.

Therese had half a mind to repeat her love to Carol, but words were useless now as they so often were between them. Carol crushed her lips against Therese's in a wave of a kiss. Only their instinct led them now, as Carol's hands traveled to the back of Therese's dress and cloyed at the zipper. Therese untucked Carol's blouse from her trousers and began making due with the buttons. Their lips parted only for a moment, and they allowed themselves a giddy smile.

Moving in to the bedroom, Carol made fast work of Therese's dress. When the garment had been disposed of, Therese's movements slowed. She led Carol to the bed and sat her down. Carol smiled, again bewitched by this new and remarkable creature that bore a resemblance to the girl she had first fallen in love with, now a woman with whom she was excited to reckon.

Therese did not speak. She stood before her lover in the darkness, only the light of the street and the moon shining through the window. And she allowed Carol to admire her, nude save for the black undergarments that remained. And slowly, one motion at a time, she removed them. Carol sat still, unblinking, but never taking her eyes from Therese's. Finally, the young woman stood naked before her, and Therese, anticipating Carol to drag her down into the sheets with her in a fury of lust, was surprised to find Carol's eyes beginning to fill with tears.

Therese dared not speak, fearing she had upset her. Nor did she move, so strange was the moment. Carol stood and took two rather reluctant steps toward Therese, as if she were something she feared to touch lest she break it. But she approached nonetheless, until finally they were close once more. Carol, her eyes now glimmering in the cool blue half-light, kissed Therese slowly, tenderly.

"Flung out of space."

She caressed Therese's cheek with her right hand. Her left found itself again at her hip. Therese held Carol's hand to her face and closed her eyes. She kissed it.

"I love you." Therese repeated.

Carol rested her head against Therese's with a soft smile. "I love you."

The women kissed once more. Soon, they were both in bed, tangled up in one another's arms, Carol's clothes haphazardly flung to the other side of the room. Their room. Their bed. Therese could still hardly believe it. She felt herself getting swept up by Carol once again. But tonight, she wanted things to be different. She wanted to show Carol the full extent of her love, of her gratitude and understanding for the magnitude of sacrifice Carol had made in order to be here tonight with her, the first of a lifetime's worth of nights just like it. And so with each movement of Carol's, each touch, each gasp she elicited from her, Therese matched it, until they were both of them caught together in the swell of emotion and transcendent passion that was unlike anything they had known since perhaps that very first night in Waterloo. They were one, every crescendo rising and falling together. A symphony of sensation, touch, and instinct. And when they reached the place beyond thought, they were there together, in the same moment, and saw past each other's eyes into that far off stretch of space that they knew only they themselves occupied and ever could occupy. The beauty of it, so far outside the limits of their language and consciousness, their heads touching, their eyes, hearts, and very souls connected, the tears came quickly and beyond their control.

Finally, they returned to the present of the bedroom, but did not dare move an inch from each other's embrace. This time, it was Therese who held Carol close, her blond hair only slightly affected by sweat, resting on her breasts. Their breath in sync as their bodies had just been. It was an experience of such purity, of such total communion between them, as Carol had described in her letter, and Therese truly did wonder why anyone would prefer anything other than this. Carol was love. Carol was home. In this place they would share together. And as they drifted off to sleep in each other's arms, Therese knew she would never sleep without her again.


	2. New Year's Eve

A/N: Thanks to those who've reviewed/faved/followed, all that good stuff! Glad you're enjoying. There isn't really a full narrative here, sort of just a series of one-shots, but I've been dying to write a PoS piece set in the amazing lesbian bar scene that was thriving in NYC during the 1950s down in Greenwich Village. So this is mostly that.

New Year's Eve, Carol in a tux, Therese in a cute dress, Abby and her gf decide to drag them to The Bagatelle (considered the best of the best lesbian bars at the time). Carol smut/fluff meets real LGBT history! Hooray!

Rated M!

* * *

Suddenly, it was New Year's Eve again. It had come upon Therese like a pleasant surprise, almost a relief. She was now living with Carol, and had been for just shy of six months. Things were wonderful and new. Her career was blossoming, she was now designing sets on her own, no longer lucky just to get apprenticeships. Her name was becoming known by all the right people. Carol, meanwhile, was flourishing in her work as a furniture buyer. She was in high demand by private clients, and had been elevated to a position of creative leadership for the store itself. Both women were immensely proud of one another.

And now here they were, on an unseasonably warm night, preparing to ring in 1954 in the company of Abby and her new lover, Charlotte. They had been going for about two months, and despite Abby's insistence that it was simply a dalliance, Carol and Therese had never known Abby to maintain one of those for quite this long. Certainly not to the point where they had the four of them dined together on multiple occasions. Indeed, Carol rarely ever even met Abby's lovers.

Therese moved through the living room of Carol's modern Madison Avenue apartment. She set out the ice bucket and began chilling a bottle of Moet. Scotch, gin, vodka, and vermouth sat nearby along with a shaker and dish of olives for Carol and Abby's martinis. She had put together a rather paltry shrimp cocktail, having realized too late that they should probably have something to eat with their drinks before supper.

She walked to the glass doors that led out onto Carol's terrace. Night had fallen such that she could see her reflection in the glass. She checked herself - a tight black dress, pearls, and a dark lip, her hair pinned back. She enjoyed her femininity, both for herself and for the fact that Carol did as well.

Abby and Charlotte were due any moment. Carol was still in the bedroom getting ready. Therese had come to learn that Carol enjoyed being indisposed when company arrived, she preferred arriving on the scene already in full swing. Thankfully, Therese enjoyed playing hostess. But as Carol had kept her outfit for the evening a secret, Therese hoped that perhaps she would make an exception and reveal herself before their guests' arrival.

Therese jostled the champagne bottle in the ice bucket. Carol mistook the sound.

"Is that them, darling?" she called from the bedroom.

"No, just me. Getting the champagne sorted."

"Oh all right. Are you ready for me?"

"On the edge of my seat." Therese grinned.

The bedroom door opened and from it emerged Carol, tall, broad-shouldered, and powerful, dressed in a perfectly tailored black tuxedo. The bow-tied collar hugged her neck just so, and the crisp white shirt beneath the partially buttoned jacket and vest accentuated the feminine contours of her body.

"Marlene Dietrich, eat your heart out." Carol deadpanned with a wry laugh. Therese felt her face flush, and on her lips grew Carol's favorite smile - bashful and girlish, self-conscious of her sudden and overwhelming excitement. No matter how mature or womanlike Therese had become, Carol knew that even a wink or knowing smirk could elicit this from her. It knocked her out every time.

"What do you think?"

"I think…I think I can't think straight." Therese breathed through her intense blushing cheeks.

"Perfect. Worked like a charm."

Carol came to her in slow, confident strides, placing a kiss on her lips that showed her possessiveness in the very best way. Pulling away from the kiss, Therese giggled as her dark lipstick remained on Carol's mouth. She brushed a thumb across her lips to clear it up.

"You look very fine." Carol said, her voice indicating precisely what she planned for them once their evening was over and company had dispersed.

At that moment, the sound of the door opening broke the spell.

"Yoo-hoo! The inspector general has arrived to make sure there's no salacious activity happening in this establishment!" Abby proclaimed as she paraded through the door, Charlotte in toe, each with a champagne bottle in hand.

"Salacious activity? Here? You must be mad!" Carol joked back as they all greeted one another with cheek kisses and hugs.

"Well don't you two look like the cat and the canary," Abby remarked, impressed. She and Charlotte looked lovely as well: Abby in dark gray high-waisted slacks and silk navy blouse with a pale gray art-deco patterned scarf, Charlotte in a royal blue cocktail dress that highlighted her curved figure, her luscious red hair in full Rita Hayworth curls.

"Here, let me take your coats," Therese offered.

"Oh please, Therese, you're not the help." Charlotte retorted, taking hers and Abby's coats and placing them on hooks by the door herself.

Abby leaned in to Theres's ear. "You're welcome for the tux, by the way. She hemmed and hawed over it but I forced her."

"You're the best pal a girl could ask for," Therese said, lifting her glass of scotch and falling into giggles with Abby.

"Who needs champagne?" Carol's voice rang like a bell through the room. Therese never thought of it as anything less than music.

"Gimlet for me, if I start with champagne this evening will be over before it starts," Charlotte said as Abby moved to help Carol with the champagne and cocktails. Therese laid out the shrimp and took a seat on the sofa, crossing her legs at the ankle and sipping her drink.

"You're awfully quiet there, kiddo," Abby pointed out.

"Am I? It's only my first scotch."

Therese could hardly put thoughts together for conversation, she was still so mesmerized by how wonderful Carol looked, which led her to think of how wonderful Carol was, in every way, and had been so surprising and thrilling with every passing day. She was full of nostalgia for what had transpired between them just one year ago. The beginning of this miraculous journey which they now made together.

"So what are our plans tonight?" Charlotte asked, taking a seat next to Therese.

"I don't know about you folks but I want to get nice and happy here, then I want to drink a dirty martini and eat a plate of oysters at a place so dark I can barely see the food in front of me," Abby declared.

"A woman after my own stomach," Carol chimed.

"Carol darling, why don't you put on a record?" Therese beckoned from the couch.

"You're letting ME choose the music? Is this some New Year's resolution I don't know about?"

Therese chuckled. She had particular tastes when it came to the music she and Carol listened to on any given night. Carol loved that about her. The record player was her domain.

"Something with lyrics," Charlotte added, "I like to sing along when I'm getting tipsy."

"Tipsy? Already?" said Therese.

"We had a cocktail at home before getting on the train. Seemed only right," Abby clarified.

It took hardly two notes before Therese was beaming at the music Carol had selected. The melody came in clear and light and lovely. Carol turned and walked toward her, finishing the last gulp of her drink. She held her hand out to a blushing Therese, who took it and stood, fitting into her lover's embrace as she led them in a relaxed, easy dance.

"Oh what a sap you are, Carol." Abby groaned, smiling at the happy couple.

"Like you're any better!" Charlotte teased before pulling Abby from the couch and twirling her.

"Can't a woman have a dance with her beloved in peace? It's New Year's Eve for Pete's sake, Abigail."

"Well now look what you've started."

The two couples danced close as the lyrics came in, " _Living for you is easy living…"_

"You're happy?" Carol asked Therese, her voice low and vulnerable.

"I never thought I could be so happy in my life." Therese answered before leaning up and placing a gentle, assuring kiss on Carol's lips.

"Happy New Year, darling," Carol replied. They kissed once more. Carol leaned their heads together and closed her eyes. Therese glanced over to Abby and Charlotte, holding one another close, a wide and devilish smile on Charlotte's face as Abby whispered something soft and private in her ear. As the song trailed off into its final measures, Carol pulled away to refill everyone's drinks.

"Oh none of that, Carol. Let's hit the town!" Abby suggested with enthusiasm.

"One more glass of champagne for me. I'll need a little more courage to traipse through Manhattan in this tux." Carol retorted. Abby conceded to her point as Charlotte went for a fresh bottle. Try though she did to be careful about it, the cork flew from the bottle and a steady stream of bubbles flowed from the top. The women shouted and laughed at the surprise, gleeful and lush as the record player moved to the next up-tempo track. Therese looked around her at Carol and their friends, sure that tonight would be as memorable a New Year's as the last.

* * *

The foursome dined at a dark little oyster bar down by Carnegie Hall. It was a hole-in-the-wall place that Abby had discovered months prior. They had each had several more drinks, but luckily the food had helped prevent them from falling out of the booth in which they sat. Carol ordered one last round of martinis for the table as the meal winded to a close.

"Well then. Where to next?" Charlotte asked. She sat beside Therese, with Carol and Abby opposite and diagonal of their lovers. They knew that the amount of alcohol in them would make it hard to remember discretion, and so they had arranged themselves to put the temptation out of their path. Therese could read on Abby's face what a sad nuisance this was, and she sympathized, though she and Carol by now knew well how to communicate touch through glances.

"Somewhere FUN." Abby declared, flat and bored.

"Oh, well, Therese and I would love to, but…" Carol began making her excuses.

"You're trying to tell me you spent that money on this tuxedo and you're not even going to take it for a spin?" Charlotte countered.

"I'm here, aren't I?"

"Somewhere it _counts_ , Ms. Aird." Charlotte's tone was full of challenge and teasing.

"I'll leave this decision up to Ms. Belivet, if you don't mind." Carol looked to Therese expectantly.

At that moment, the waiter arrived with their fresh drinks which Carol poured from the shaker, giving Therese a moment to think. Having had far more to drink than she had in quite some time, Therese was indeed feeling adventurous. And from the tone of Charlotte's voice, she knew that wherever she wanted to take them was somewhere Therese was curious to discover. She spoke with confidence and hoped that Carol would not be cross.

"Actually, I…I wouldn't mind staying out a bit longer."

"Atta girl, Therese. Besides, what's better than New Year's in New York?" Abby agreed.

"I thought you hated the crowds on New Year's Eve, Therese," Carol's voice had a coolness that Therese knew would be fleeting.

"Only when I was alone in them." At this, Carol could not fight back a small smile. She downed the last of her martini and let forth a great sigh.

"All right. Where to?"

"Abby, have these two ever been on the scene?" Charlotte asked. Abby only laughed.

"Ha! Carol? She wouldn't dare. Tried as I have, she prefers locking little Rapunzel here away in the tower all to herself."

"Well. That settles that."

"Where are we going?" Therese asked.

"To get into some trouble, my girl," Charlotte chirped, throwing a friendly arm around Therese's shoulders.

"She means The Bagatelle." Abby clarified.

"Abigail, you're going to owe me for this one day very soon." Carol warned as they stood from the table, Carol tossing a wad of cash down in their wake, unconcerned with the bill.

* * *

They piled into a cab. Before anyone could contradict her, Charlotte instructed the cabby only to take them to Union Square, to Therese's curiosity. They rode in near silence, Charlotte in the front seat, Abby between Therese and Carol in the back.

Therese realized she was still getting used to the fact that she was not allowed to display even the least bit of public affection toward Carol. The car let them off in the heart of Union Square, teaming with people of all sorts. Charlotte paid the driver and the group spilled onto the sidewalk.

"It's about a five block schlep from here." Charlotte explained, and they began walking. Therese found herself walking beside Abby, who offered her a cigarette which she gratefully accepted.

"Abby - why didn't she just give the driver the cross streets?"

Abby looked at her with an almost sad smile.

"Oh, kiddo. You're smarter than that." Abby nudged her elbow as she took a drag on her cigarette. Therese stopped to light hers as Abby continued walking, catching up with Carol and Charlotte. And suddenly the reality became full in her mind that a few hours ago they had been dancing as lovers in her living room, and now they strode down the sidewalk, hands in pockets or clutching a purse.

Carol looked back and saw Therese had stopped, taking the first puff of her cigarette. She approached her young lover with curiosity, but did not touch her.

"Are you all right?"

"Yes, I'm…I'm fine."

"We're both a bit drunk, aren't we?" Carol said with a slight wickedness. Therese only laughed a little in response.

"Come on, let's catch up."

The melancholy that Therese feared would plague the rest of her evening disappeared the moment they arrived at The Bagatelle. Outside stood an enormous Italian bouncer that at first frightened Therese, but when she noticed that only women were coming in or out, women who looked and carried themselves far more like herself and Carol than anyone she had met otherwise, her excitement built exponentially.

"How's living, Tony?" Charlotte asked as they got to the door.

"Looking forward to 54, Charlie. Looking forward to 54."

"You and me both. Room at the inn for me and my friends here?"

"Always." he said as he opened the door for them.

The place was full of smoke and jazz. Ladies of every walk of life sat huddled in any spare corner they could find. A quartet played in the back. Women in suits sat with women in dresses draped across their laps, sharing cigarettes, booze, and kisses. Young couples gazed from across a dirty table in silence, loners hung at the bar with their eyes trained like missiles on any wide-eyed beautiful creature in need of a dance partner. It was like walking into another world.

Therese, almost without thinking, sidled up to the bar as Abby, Charlotte, and Carol searched for a table. She continued to look around in awe. The bartender was another Italian man, and Therese idly realized that a place like this was probably owned by the mob. She didn't care. She felt dangerous and alive and yet unbelievably safe here.

"What'll ya have?" came an unfamiliar voice. She turned and there beside her was a handsome and masculine woman. She had a stocky build and wore a workman's shirt and dungarees.

"Oh, um…" Therese was blindsided by the advance, it was so utterly unfamiliar to her. She hadn't had an experience like this since the party at Genevieve Cranell's.

"I'll take care of her drink, thank you," came the threatening pur of Carol's voice behind her. Therese felt a hand slide firmly around her waist as Carol stood beside her, dripping with confidence and swagger.

"Sorry pal, didn't realize she was spoken for." The other woman grumbled and wandered away.

Therese looked up at Carol and gave her that special signature smile of quiet excitement. Carol winked at her before leaning down and placing a soft kiss on her neck, making sure everyone in the immediate vicinity knew she was very, very much spoken for. She felt the eyes of many on them. And who could keep their eyes off of Carol in her tuxedo if they tried, Therese wondered. She had never felt so sexy or proud to be the woman on her arm, and she liked how territorial Carol was being of her.

After ordering them each a scotch and gimlets for Abby and Charlotte, they found the other couple at a hidden corner table by the jazz band in the back. In front of them was a small dance floor that was filled to the brim with couples. It was wondrous to see. Therese wanted to live here. Abby and Charlotte braved the crowd of dancers, squeezing in to be as close with one another as they cared to be.

Taking full advantage of the setting, Therese pulled her chair as close to Carol's as possible, allowing her high-heeled foot to rub up and down along the older woman's pant leg. She nipped lightly at Carol's ear. Carol turned to her with a devilish smirk.

"Someone's enjoying herself," Carol said.

"Of course," she pulled Carol's face to hers and planted a long kiss, "Do you know how badly I've wanted to do that in front of people?"

Carol looked around. "I'm not sure anyone noticed."

"That's the best part." Therese grinned.

"You're funny," Carol said affectionately.

"But isn't it wonderful, Carol? To be somewhere where we can touch each other however we like?"

Carol leaned in close. "Believe me, if I were to touch you however I liked, it would shock even this crowd."  
Therese nearly felt the life escape her body. She closed her eyes and opened them. Carol pulled away, satisfied as she took in the open-mouthed stupor that had temporarily overtaken Therese. Perhaps there was a face of hers that Carol enjoyed more than that coy smile.

"15 seconds folks!" came the voice of the male band leader. A young woman hurriedly ran through the bar handing out noise makers and hats. Carol and Therese took theirs, laughing with the crowd. They stood and joined Charlotte and Abby on the dance floor. The countdown began.

"10…9…8…" they all chanted in chorus. Therese took in the scene around her, women in love everywhere she looked. And finally, Carol. Carol as she had always been and would always be for her. She looked at her as she had that night in the Elysee, with a certainty of her love so overwhelming it began bringing tears to her eyes. And Carol returned her gaze, just as she had that night, and she knew they were heading into another year of love and comfort, with nights spent wrapped in each other's arms and days lived well.

"3…2…1! Happy New Year!"

The cacophony of noisemakers around them and the bursts of confetti hardly registered with either of them as their eyes remained fixed on one another. As tears fell slowly from Therese, Carol cupped her face in her hands and, almost in unison with countless couples around them, pulled her in for a perfect, breathtaking kiss, one that carried all the promise and relief of their first.

"I love you," Carol said, her hands still at Therese's cheeks. Therese, unable to speak, simply kissed her again, with vigor. They continued kissing passionately, Therese sneaking her hands beneath Carol's jacket and tugging lightly at the back of her shirt. The two were still as magnetically drawn to one another as they had been during the journey out west. They had yet to let even more than one night or so pass without making love. And as they pulled apart in this moment and looked into each other's eyes with love, desire, and need, Therese knew her patience would wear thin at any moment.

Carol turned to Abby and Charlotte, who were smiling and lost in each other's gaze, dancing slow and singing Auld Lang Syne as the band played.

"Abby, I think we're going to…"

"Say no more, lovebirds. Happy New Year," Charlotte answered on behalf of herself and Abby, who seemed far too caught up in staring at Charlotte with a schoolgirl expression of love to notice anything else around her.

As they began gathering their coats, Therese felt a pang of sadness hit her. She remembered what lay beyond the doors of this place. She wasn't sure a car ride spent in silence on opposite sides of the cab would do much to enhance or sustain the passion and desire she felt for her lover in this moment, in this miraculous place. Carol felt her hesitation and stepped toward her.

"What's wrong?" she asked. Therese spoke frankly.

"I don't think I can stand a whole ride home without touching you," she said. A slow and thrilled smile crept over Carol's face. She put their coats down and took Therese by the hand, guiding her with confidence and determination.

She approached the restroom, opening the door only to see several of the stalls occupied by couples with similar ideas in mind. Carol let the door swing shut behind them, and they laughed like schoolgirls.

"I have another idea," Carol said as she noticed a small corridor that was likely reserved for staff entrances and exits only. She pulled Therese along until they burst open the "Emergency Exit Only" designated door to find themselves in an abandoned alleyway. A small table sat next to them, where employees took smoke breaks, and a large wall of crates containing empty liquor bottles built a kind of blockade between the alley and any main cross street. It was dark, dirty, and void of any other life save for the sounds coming from inside or 12th street nearby. It was good enough for Therese.

She pulled Carol to her, bringing them both against the brick wall of the back of the building. She kissed Carol furiously, who responded in kind. She traced her lips all over Therese's, not caring that the dark lipstick would smudge and smear. She kissed down her neck, across her collar, giving love bites along the way, some she knew would leave a lasting mark. Carol pulled away only for a moment to admire her young lover and bask in the giddiness of this moment.

"What is it?" Therese asked.

"Nothing. I feel like a teenager," Carol replied with a small laugh. Therese returned it and kissed her gleefully.

Carol began pulling up the skirt of Therese's dress and lifting her ever so slightly off the ground, tugging her hose down with enough force to create several runs, rendering them useless beyond this moment. Therese hardly cared. Bracing herself and Therese with her left, Carol brought her right hand between Therese's legs, sighing with delight against the young woman's neck as she felt her incredible wetness. Therese smiled, only a little bashful.

This was not to be their usual lovemaking of tenderness and romance. This was to be passion, hunger, and pure instinct, as it had been their first time. Just like then, Therese needed no coaxing, no convincing, not that she ever had with her lover. But this was something purer than that, a basic, primal need for Carol to do whatever she pleased and touch her anywhere she liked.

And so she did, placing two fingers inside of her, eliciting a loud gasp and broad smile at the immediate pleasure of it. Steadily, Carol began pumping into her, in rhythm, but with purpose and vigor. Therese was almost instantly overwhelmed. She held Carol's gaze, and felt herself close to tears as Carol began curling her middle finger at that one particular spot along her wall, that wonderful point from which Therese knew there was no return. Carol knew it too, relishing Therese's helpless gasps of pleasure as she repeated Carol's name, saying, "please," but for what specifically, neither of them fully knew. She only knew to continue.

Therese buried her head into Carol's neck, biting at the sweet, perfumed skin, perhaps a bit too firmly. But it was all she could do to keep from shouting into the night. Carol added a third finger as her thumb lightly brushed across Therese's most sensitive piece of flesh. And still, her middle finger curled along that wall inside just so. Within seconds, Therese felt her great release overtake her, shuddering into Carol's embrace, certain she would collapse to the ground if Carol were not bracing them both with her left hand.

Carol remained inside her as the final tremors of her climax moved through her. She held Therese close, syncing their breath little by little. Therese wrapped her arms around Carol as tight as she could, suddenly overwhelmed by emotion and satisfaction, and Carol decided in this moment that giving Therese pleasure like this was worth more than any pleasure she could ever receive, incredible at it though Therese was.

After a moment of pure, silent intimacy, Carol pulled away from Therese, restoring her young lover firmly to the ground. They chuckled slightly at the sight of Therese's torn hose. Carol pulled a handkerchief from the pocket of her tuxedo and wiped her fingers, an act so brazen and sexy that it seemed to temporarily hypnotize Therese with its sudden and unexpected allure.

"So what do you think? Got my money's worth out of this tux?" Carol asked.

"I know I certainly did," Therese retorted. Carol let out her loud, single laugh that Therese adored. She pulled her young lover in for another kiss.

"Happy New Year, Carol," Therese whispered, packing the statement with all the love the year had given them.

"Let's go home," Carol said. Abandoning their coats and companions, they made their way through the alley out onto 12th street, joining the throngs of revelers, drunk and falling over with love and promise for a new year. Amidst the joyful chaos of the scene, Carol discreetly took Therese's hand in hers, holding it tight as they disappeared into the midnight bustle of Union Square.

* * *

A/N: Thanks for reading! Hope we're all enjoying our Carol marathons now that the DVD is released!


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